Chapter 277
Step (ステップ Suteppu) is the 277th chapter of manga, Baby Steps. Characters in Order of Appearance *Hisashi Kanda *Eiichiro Maruo *Pete Gonzales *Atsushi Taira *Kazuya Maruo *Sanae Maruo *Soji Ike *Krishna Ramesh *Yu Nabae *Takuma Egawa *Hiroshi Araya *Ayumu Monma Summary Eiichiro starts to master underspin after he realizes something during the beach tennis practice match. The bracket for Bradenton Open is now released and it turns out that Pete and Eiichiro will face each other in the first round. Synopsis After Ei-chan's realization, he gets Atsushi to help him master his underspin on Sunday (five days before the Bradenton Open). He has Atsushi hitting balls of different speeds and heights to his forehand so he could practice returning them with a slice that confers a strong underspin to the ball, since a forehand slice is a shot that's used infrequently. Ei-chan thinks that with control and proper timing of the shot, it might become a weapon to destroy his opponents. Atsushi allows for two hours of practice since it's supposed to be a rest day, during which time Ei-chan's able to improve his control and speed and practice using a forehand slice in a rally. Pete sees them practicing as he gets back from visiting his family. Atsushi calls an end to the practice since it's already been two hours. Pete comments that Japanese are really into studying, but Atsushi says Ei-chan is special even among them. Pete discovers Ei-chan's notes that he'd heard about and is apparently shocked by the detailed contents. He asks why Ei-chan can take things that far, and Ei-chan says it's to get stronger. Pete thinks Ei-chan's working hard to become a pro for his family, but Ei-chan says it's for himself. Pete marvels that Ei-chan can be so stoic for himself. Pete shows a picture of his family. Ei-chan's amazed that Pete has so many relatives: parents, grandparents, old brother, two older sisters, younger sister, the family of his uncle. A big family but not that well-off, so Pete is aiming to become a tennis pro to support them. Atsushi says that sort of thing is common in the States, and Ei-chan is further amazed that this innocent, cheerful guy is shouldering such a burden. Three days before the Bradenton Open, Ei-chan is eating with Ike when Krishna returns. He'd been to Japan to take part in the Super Juniors. Ei-chan asks how he fared, and Krishna says he made it to the finals but lost to Nabae and wonders why Nabae is still a junior (meaning not yet pro). Ei-chan says he thinks Nabae will soon turn pro. Krishna says there are lots of strong Japanese players besides Ike. Atsushi adds that for the first time there are Japanese players besides Ike with a world ranking less than 300, so this year's All-Japan Championship seems exciting. Then Ike reveals he'll be taking part in the All-Japan Championship, that's why he'll go to Japan with Ei-chan. Ei-chan says Ike should have told him sooner, when it was decided. Ike replies that he was thinking of surprising Ei-chan, but Ei-chan thinks Ike had forgotten about it until just then. Ei-chan has a week left before returning to Japan and as soon as he arrives in Japan the preliminaries for the All-Japan Championship will begin. He concludes he's definitely gotten stronger in the two months, but what he wants is results. Pete arrives and asks if everyone has seen the draw for the Bradenton Open. Alex is the No.2 seed, and Ei-chan's first-round opponent is Pete. Navigation Category:Volume 29 Category:Training at IMG Academy Arc